Afghan heroin is sold throughout the West

Heroin produced in Afghanistan is sold in virtually all the Western countries, Rustam Nazarov, Director of the Agency for Drugs Control with the president of Tajikistan, said as addressing a news conference at the Novosti news agency Monday.

"There is no country in the West where Afghan-produced heroin is not sold," said Mr Nazarov.

The Tajik official therefore believes that Western countries should provide financial aid to the countries neighbouring Afghanistan so that they could reinforce their law-enforcement agencies fighting drug traffic. "These agencies should be reinforced with, above all, technical means," said Mr Nazarov.

Moreover, he deemed it necessary to toughen control over Afghanistan's imports of components that can be used in heroin production.

Tajikistan and Afghanistan have agreed to open the Tajik Agency's office in Afghanistan, according to Mr Nazarov. Two Agency staffers will start working in Kabul as early as in late 2003.